


The First Time I Met Him

by isissa



Series: Mettaton and NEO [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, ex/neo - Freeform, if you dont ship it dw you can still enjoy this pretty easily, mettacest - Freeform, mettacest fluff, mettaton ex/mettaton neo, robot crying, robots doing people things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2015-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-07 10:11:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5452868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isissa/pseuds/isissa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alphys introduces the titular robot to a very familiar face. It's more awkward than she expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The First Time I Met Him

 

The first time they had met, he was just like a lost puppy. It was after a long day of work, Mettaton returned to Alphys' lab for repairs, just as the usual Friday routine usually went, except when he got there, Alphys was vibrating with excitement. “You've _got_ to see this.” She'd insisted, taking Mettaton's hand with a vice-grip and pulling him downstairs. The uncharacteristic enthusiasm of Alphys caught the bot by surprise, so in his curiosity, he allowed her to lead him into the basement. 

 

Alphys' basement when they lived in the underground was not a...happy place...and suffice it to say, the above-ground basement wasn't all that great either. It was strides from the horrific den of evil Mettaton had caught glimpses of every now and then, obviously, but that doesn't mean it was pleasant to spend time in. Cold air met with Mettaton's synthetic skin which made him shudder. Alphys didn't seem phased, not losing pace through the dimly lit hallway. Abruptly Alphys ground to a stop, turning to face an inconspicuous door off to the left of the hallway.

 

“Alright, this is it, alright.” Still holding Mettaton's hand, she turned the doorknob with her spare set of claws and stepped inside. The room Mettaton followed her into was sparsely decorated, but a curtain towards the end of the room stood out most of all. It was a dark red, a small crease moving behind it. Mettaton raised an eyebrow.

 

“Alphys, what are you showing me, exactly?” At the sound of his voice, the movement behind the curtain froze. Mettaton's brow rose higher and he glared expectantly at the smaller woman. Alphys realised she still had her vice grip on Mettaton's hand and let go quickly before rubbing her hands together.

 

“You're gonna _love_ this.” She stepped over towards the curtain, and Mettaton figured he wasn't meant to follow. The robot leant back on a desk that was close to the door and watched as Alphys disappeared behind the curtain. His eyes drifted slowly, over the flickering ceiling light, back down to the curtain, and then across the tiled floor. As he stood, Alphys' quiet, unintelligible whispers seemed to be the only sound in the room, save for the humming of electronics and Mettaton's own internal workings. 

 

Alphys stepped out, drawing Mettaton's attention back to her and the curtain. “You can come out now.” Alphys spoke to the figure behind the curtain, stepping back to give it room. Mettaton was sick of waiting, so he stood up straight to meet whoever or whatever was about to come out. Not a moment later, black hair and half of someone's face poked out from behind the curtain. The figure's eyes flittered up to meet Mettaton's, and then back down at the ground. Thin metal fingers gripped the curtain below.

 

Mettaton recognised the face instantly, and felt a flurry of emotion he wasn't quite able to discern. His face twisted and he shot a glare towards Alphys. “What did you-”

 

“Wait!” Alphys yelped, her hands shooting up in front of her. “Just wait, okay, or you'll-” She watched as the figure slipped back behind the curtain, out of Mettaton's sight. “You'll probably scare him,... Jeeze, did you have to growl like that straight away, Mettaton?”

 

Mettaton was going to shoot something back but bit his tongue as he glanced back towards the curtain. The figure was poking it's head out again. Mettaton felt slightly sick. “Neo. Right? She'd call you that, isn't that right Alphy?”

 

Alphys' eyes darted back and forth between the two robots. Her face looked like she had expected this meeting to go a lot better than it was. Mettaton looked away from her and closed his eyes, sucking in a deep breath through clenched teeth. It helped to clear his head. He looked back to Neo, who's hand was still firmly gripping the curtain. 

 

Mettaton pushed on his best stardom smile and warm voice. “You can come out, darling. I'm not going to hurt you.” Neo stepped out, slowly, with his eyes trained on Mettaton's. As his entire body came into view, Mettaton saw the cannon on his other arm. He lost his composure for a moment and glared daggers at Alphys. “It's even got  _that?_ ”

 

Alphys flinched and simply frowned back at him. Mettaton resumed his cool facade and met with Neo's eyes once again, but as soon as he did, Neo looked towards the floor. Mettaton grit his teeth. _I can't take it out on something so...timid..._ he thought to himself.

 

“Well,” Mettaton began, voice trembling slightly. “aren't you something, dear.” Neo's eyes were still to the ground, but he looked like he wanted to speak. “So, you don't seem to act like me...which makes me wonder, who are you _really_?” Neo looked up, taken back by the question.

 

“...w-who?” Neo echoed, and Mettaton cringed at the sound of his own voice from across the room.

 

“Yes, darling. Who. As in who are you?” Mettaton hissed. Neo shrunk back a little.

 

“I...I don't...” Neo stumbled over his words. “I don't know what you mean-” Mettaton lost his patience, his facade tearing at the seams. He was about to take a step towards the two across the room when Alphys cut in.

 

“Mettaton, it's not another soul! He's based off you. Remember when I had you fill out all the personality questionnares and sheets? He's synthetic, okay? Now calm down, please...”

 

Mettaton took that step forward, but stopped there. “Just in case, right, Alphys? In case of emergencies.”

 

“M-Mettaton...I have no idea why you're so upset, I-”

 

“We're never going to use it, Mettaton!” Mettaton shot back, his voice modified to sound like Alphys'. “Just in case. Because I know it makes you uncomfortable.” His voice grew very deep at the last few syllables, causing Alphys to shrink back a little.

 

Recollection flashed in her eyes. Alphys looked like she was about to cry. “That was when...I showed you the design...you didn't like it...how did I forget-”

 

Mettaton huffed and took a few steps closer to Neo. Alphys knew how strong Mettaton could be, but threw herself inbetween the two instantly. Mettaton grabbed her by the wrist, forcefully but careful not to hurt her, and simply moved her out of the way, stepping around the blockade. Once he was close enough, he took Neo by the shoulder and pulled him close to him. He could feel himself shaking, unsure of what he was going to do next. Neo looked up at him, tears pooling in the corner of his eyes. Mettaton froze. Neo tried to step back but slipped on the tile and ended up not moving very far at all. Mettaton kept him held up close to his face. Neo seemed to accept his fate and shut his eyes tightly, shrinking down as if he was about to be hit. He probably was.

 

Mettaton dropped Neo and turned away in one swift movement. Neo crumpled onto the floor, shuffling back slightly towards Alphys.

 

“This is horrible.” Mettaton huffed. Alphys opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by Mettaton spinning around and speaking in a loud, clear voice. “If you're going to be based off me, fucking act like it, Neo!” He was still forceful, but the malice in Mettaton's voice was gone. Neo looked up at him with a puzzled stare. Mettaton walked forward again and took Neo by the hands, pulling him up off the floor so he could stand. The two were about the same height, though Neo would have been taller if he stood up straight. Mettaton recognised this and even something as small as a few centimeters in height annoyed him. He returned to barking at Neo. “Straighten _**up,**_ dear. Straighter. Taller. Now puff your chest out more. Good.” Neo awkwardly followed his instructions, constantly glancing to and from Mettaton's eyes, as if looking for some sign of approval. 

 

“Right, that's very good darling.” Neo seemed to relax a little at Mettaton's praise. “Now, introduce yourself to me properly. Don't skirt around it.” Neo froze up again and seemed to shrink down, staring at the floor. “Are you sure you're based off me...?” Mettaton sighed. 

 

“He is, Mettaton. He was a lot like you at first, but while we worked on his form, he started to get nervous. Now he's completely terrified of you...because...well, he wanted to impress you.” Alphys explained. Mettaton had almost forgotten she was still there. His face twisted into a frown. 

 

“I'm _very_ uncomfortable with this, Alphys.” He looked back towards Neo. “But I can't dislike a fan. Now, introduce yourself, okay honey?” 

 

Neo fidgeted with their hands a little bit, then began to speak. “I'm...” he seemed taken back by his own voice. “I'm, uh, I-” he blushed and his eyes shot down to the floor again. Mettaton bit back a huff. 

 

“Come on darling, you can do it.” 

 

“I'm N-Neo.” Neo's eyes shot around the room, meeting briefly with Mettaton's, then glancing away again. “I'm...I'm s-s-” Mettaton watched as the taller robot began to shake again. “I'm s-sorry-!” Neo's hands shot up to his face and he...burst into tears?

 

Mettaton's figurative stomach dropped. “Oh-oh my goodness, d-darling-” he found himself unsure of what to do for a few moments, so he wrapped Neo into a hug. “It's...it's okay, really honey, please just...just don't cry, alright?” 

 

Neo began to cry harder. Mettaton was shooting a desperate glare towards Alphys, eyes wide in shock.  _ What do I do, Alphys?  _ He mouthed at her. Alphys looked almost as surprised as Mettaton felt and shrugged. Hearing a slightly more static-y version of his own voice crying against his shoulder was a surreal experience for Mettaton, he found himself stroking Neo's hair before he knew what he was doing, trying to calm down the hysterical robot. “Shhh, it's okay, you haven't done anything wrong, alright...?” 

 

Neo's sobs soon became intelligible words. “I didn't mean it, I made you angry and I-” 

 

“Didn't mean to do what, honey?” 

 

“I m-made you angry-” Neo began to cry heavily again. 

 

Mettaton was so, so out of his area of experience. “No, sweetie, you didn't, I swear,” he stroked Neo's hair again. “I just had a bad day, and I took it out on you. It was my fault, alright?” 

 

Neo shook his head, but didn't reply with words. The two stood their for a few more minutes as Neo continued to cry, eventually slowing to quiet uneven sobs. Neo stepped back and wiped his face down with his hands. Mettaton looked at the oil that was running down Neo's features and felt incredibly guilty. He walked back across the room to the desk by the door, pulling out a few tissues, returning, and dabbing Neo's tears with them. 

 

“There, you look much more beautiful with those out of the way. Do you feel a bit better now?” 

 

Neo nodded. “I'm sorr-”

 

Mettaton cringed and held up his hands. “No, no, no more of that. No more apologies, darling.”  _ Pleasedon'tcryagainpleasedon'tcryagain- _

 

“I'm...I'm sorry for-” Neo realised his mistake and shut his mouth without another word. Mettaton offered him a tissue and he continued to wipe off his face with it. 

 

Mettaton gave the taller robot a reassuring pat on the shoulder, then turned to Alphys, who was watching off to the side. “He's really meant to have my personality?” 

 

Alphys shrugged. “He's how I saw you when we first met. I didn't know you very well. And a few months of anxiety have changed him up quite a bit.” 

 

_ Oh, ASGORE, months? She's been working on Neo for months? _

 

“I-I know that look, and look, Mettaton, it's not that I meant for something like that to happen. I honestly didn't know you'd be that uncomfortable.” 

 

Mettaton glanced back at Neo. “I'm not uncomfortable anymore.” he made sure to be looking at Neo as he said that, before turning back to Alphys. “But I was... _ surprised _ when I saw him. It's like...looking at a clone, or something.” Mettaton touched his fingertips to his chest. “I'm just very protective of Ex, can you blame me? This body is all I've ever wished for. Seeing someone that's...that close...I lost it for a second. It's been a long week, Alphy.” 

 

Alphys nodded understandingly. “It's alright, Mettaton.” 

 

Mettaton smiled at Alphys then nodded to himself. “But what isn't alright,” Mettaton spun around on his heel. “Is this! You're simply a mess, Neo. You need more confidence.” 

 

Neo perked up at the mention of his name, then grimaced. “I'm sorry-” 

 

“Darling, I'll let you know when you need to apologise, so give it a rest for a while, okay?” 

 

Neo nodded back. 

 

“Good! Now, I'm going to teach you to act like a star.” 


End file.
